Organizers & Partners

The 1st National Convention on Poverty and Sustainable Development is an event led by the Samar State University in Catbalogan City. This is equally supported by three other State Universities in the entire Samar Island namely, Northwest Samar State University (NwSSU), Eastern Samar State University (ESSU), and the University of Eastern Philippines (UEP). The Provincial Local Government Unit of Samar (PLGU-Samar) and the City Government Unit of Catbalogan (CLGU-Catbalogan) also is a major partner in this activity.

Samar State University is one of the two SUCs in Western Samar, the other one is NwSSU. SSU has three campuses namely; SSU-Main, SSU-Mercedes Campus and SSU-Paranas Campus. It has one extension campus in Basey Samar. The three campuses are ISO certified and its programs are accredited by the Accrediting Agency for Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines. It has seven colleges namely College of Graduate Studies, College of Engineering, College of Education, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Industrial Technology, College of Nursing, College of Fisheries and Marine Sciences and (SSU-Mercedes), Parananas and Basey Campuses. The unit that spearheads the PovCon2017 is the Research Center for Culture and Social Issues (RCCSI) of the university.

Northwest Samar State University (NwSSU) is the other university in Western Samar. It has two campuses, the main campus in Calbayog City is formerly known as the Tiburcio Tancinco Memorial Institute of Science and Technology and the San Jorge campus is formerly known as the Samar National Agricultural School. NwSSU has humble begenings in 1959 and become NwSSU in 2009.

Eastern Samar State University is the only university in Eastern Samar. It has five campuses located in Can-Avid, Guiuan, Maydolong, Salcedo and the main campus at Borongan City. The main campus was the Eastern Samar National Regional Agricultural School and become the seat of ESSU and was known as ESSU-main Campus through RA 9313. Other names of the school were Eastern Samar Junior Agricultural Colleges, Eastern Samar College of Agriculture, and Eastern Samar State College.

The University of Eastern Philippines is the oldest university in Eastern Visayas, established in 1964 through HB 4050. It was once known as the Catarman Farm School in 1918. It became the Catarman Agricultural School and later became Catarman National Agricultural High School (1950). In 1956, the school became Samar Institute of Technology in 1598 and finally UEP. The university has three campuses with its main campus found in Catarman, Northern Samar and in Laoang and Catubig Northern Samar. UEP has a total of 11 colleges/Institutes in the three campuses. A total of 43 of its program is AACCUP accredited in different levels, level III as the highest.

Samar or Western Samar is one of the three provinces in the Island of Samar, the other two being the Northern Samar and Eastern Samar. Samar has two districts, the first district has one city and 8 municipalities and the second district has once component city and 16 municipalities. The two component cities are Catbalogan and Calbayog. Population in the Province of Samar has reached 780,481 based on 2015 census.

The province has rich historical background with oldest tools found in Sohoton caves dating 8550 BC. The first explorer who first came to the island is no other than Ruy Lopez de Villalobos who named it Las Islas Filipinas. Known in historical past as Samal, Ibabao and Tandaya. The name “Samar” was derived from the local language samad, meaning “wound” or “cut”, describing the rough physical features of the island, rugged and deeply dissected by river and streams.

The entire Samar Island is home of the Samar Island Natural Park. It prides itself as one of the last remaining reserve of rainforest with significant flora and fauna. It also prides itself having vast natural resources.

Ecotourism sites in Samar Island are comparable to the best of the Philippines in terms of its beauty. Attending the conference will allow them to visit at least one of the many. It houses the second largest Cave in Asia (Calbiga Caves) and has hundreds other caves, waterfalls with Calbayog having the most number, beaches, many are still undeveloped with natural beauty, rivers and streams and canyoning, forest and mountain hiking and camping, and many more.

Samar Province will host the LGU breakout session during the second day of the conference.

To know more about Samar please visit http://samar.lgu-ph.com or contact them through the following numbers; (055) 251-2982 (Governor’s Office: Sharee Ann T. Tan) and 543-8980 (Tourism Office).

Catbalogan City is the Capital of the province of Samar. The city is one of Samar’s main commercial, trading, educational, financial and political centers, the gateway to the region’s three Samar Provinces. Founded in 1596 by Jesuit priests and become the capital of the entire island of Samar. In June 2007, Catbalogan become a city after a 97% yes vote in a plebiscite.

Catbalogan was originally known as KATBALAUGAN, after a shrub called “balaug” that used to thrive along its seashore and the sandy banks at the mouth of the Antiao River. Catbalogan has a total of 103,879 people scattered in the 57 barangays (villages), seven of which are island barangays.

Catbalogan is home of the known Tribu Catbalaugan (Manaragat Festival) winning competition in Cebu’s Sinulog Festival and the Aliwan Festival in Manila. Catbalogan is the home of two campuses of Samar State University and the city is where the PovCon2017 will be conducted.

Catbalogan is headed by a a lady mayor, Stephany Uy-Tan. The city proactive government has engaged itself to local, regional, national and international activities, the most resent of which was the United Cities Local Governments – Asia Pacific which was attended by Mayors from the Asia Pacific, local and national participants and the youth. For more information about the city, please visit their website at http://www.catbalogan.gov.ph/